Mastercard downed by Anon-Assange-fans

Mastercard is feeling the wrath of the internet this afternoon - its website and at least part of its payment systems have apparently been brought down by a denial of service attack.

The credit card company is being typically cryptic - its most recent statement said only that it is "is experiencing heavy traffic on its external corporate website", which is a nicely understated way to describe an overwhelming DDoS assault.

The statement added: "We are working to restore normal speed of service. There is no impact whatsoever on our cardholders' ability to use their cards for secure transactions."

However the Reg has been contacted by merchants down under who are currently unable to access the payment portal on Mastercard's private network - a far more serious breach of security than just downing a website.